HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- It may be a harder sell to convince Huntsville to move Johnson High School than to move Grissom High School.

Both are very real possibilities, and Grissom's fate could be decided by the month's end. The parallel process on Johnson is running a month or two behind. But in both cases the final steps will include upcoming town hall meetings.

As for Johnson, school officials have quietly narrowed their sights to two possibilities, either rebuild it where it sits or move to a spot just north of Stringfield Road off Blue Spring Road. It's too early to say for certain if the board is leaning one direction or another.

But it's also difficult to see the necessity in the move. School officials say they don't want to waste an opportunity to do something to improve the visibility of the school and perhaps encourage growth in northwest Huntsville. It's true that Johnson isn't visible from Winchester Road, tucked in trees behind fields and subdivisions. It sits on a large campus on the northern edge of the city.

So school officials approached the family that owns the fields in front of the school directly along Winchester. But Walter Brosemer said the land has been in his family since the 1890s, they still work it to raise flowers for local florists. They don't intend to sell. Yet he's concerned that the board's debate regarding a new Johnson is not being conducted in public.

Technically, he's right. There have been no open public meetings, no open debates. School officials say the secrecy is related to negotiations over potential land prices. They say that they will act only with public approval. That seems to mean the public gets to weigh in once the decision is down to the best two options.

The system began by identifying at least nine possible sites for a new Johnson. Most were crossed off the list for sitting too far north; some were up by Toyota, well past where students live, said Superintendent Casey Wardynski. Another site along Highway 53 was too expensive. Eventually, the contenders were all in one general area near Stringfield Road.

According to tax records, two different churches, St. James Primitive Baptist Church and St. John African Methodist Episcopal on Church Street, own large undeveloped tracts just north of Stringfield Road near Blue Spring Road. There are also two large undeveloped tracts just to the west, closer to Pulaski Pike, owned by individuals.

School officials say they are negotiating prices and can't discuss which of the four lots, if any, they may be interested in. Although officials with St. John emailed to say they have not been contacted by the school system.

Laurie McCaulley, president of the school board, said school officials met with northwest community representatives and some church leaders on Thursday to begin discussions about rebuilding the 40-year-old Johnson. School officials used a similar approach in south Huntsville, holding a series of small meetings with representatives from PTAs and neighborhood associations and other groups.

For Grissom, plans also quickly fell to two options, build in place or move to a larger undeveloped property behind Sam's Club west of Memorial Parkway. The board clearly is leaning toward moving Grissom. The main argument is that Grissom sits on 34 acres at its current campus, about half the ideal amount for the campus. Wardynski and others say rebuilding there, while still using the current school, would eat up the athletic fields, complicate construction schedules, force the system to build upwards, drive up costs per square foot and drag out the process a year or two. It's a fairly persuasive argument.

But nothing is set in stone. The land across Memorial Parkway is owned by a company owned by the Hays family. Negotiations over price continue, said board member Jennie Robinson late last week. "The Hays thing is definitely not a done deal," said Robinson.

As for south Huntsville, she said, the big question is what would occupy the old Grissom campus. She said it's a "dealbreaker" if the system can't arrange for something that adds value to the neighborhood. Wardynski has said the current Grissom fields could be used by middle school athletic teams.

Most of the current building would be demolished, but two recent additions could be preserved. Robinson floated several other uses for those newer wings: Huntsville Center for Technology programs, central office for the school system, retail development, school system support offices. She said she prefers a community college satellite campus, if possible. But definitely no "gaping hole" for the neighborhood, said Robinson.

Surely more ideas will come up at Grissom on Jan. 14 during the open meeting to discuss the plans. Although, given the momentum from numerous smaller community meetings and the limited space at the current campus, it would take some grave revelation or public outcry to stop the school from moving.

That's not true for Johnson. There is plenty of space at the current Johnson campus. There would be no added expense, no construction delays, no reason to build extra stories. So far, McCaulley said there is no clear consensus from community leaders in north Huntsville.

"There's just excitement about having a new school. They get disappointed when I say it will take two or three years to build it," said McCaulley, saying the system is only beginning a traffic study and environmental study. That could take six to eight weeks, she said. She said if the schools does move, the current Johnson could be used by the city, perhaps by city firefighters for training.

Coincidentally, she said the new Johnson will have a student program for training future firefighters and public safety workers. The new Johnson could also house seventh- and eighth-graders, replacing the old Davis Hills Middle. That would allow the system to spend $30 million to build the new school for 1,200 students, she said. Grissom will cost $60 million and hold more than 2,000 students.

McCaulley said she couldn't be more specific on Johnson's location because the system was negotiating over potential property prices. She said the board would hold public meetings on Johnson ahead of any final votes.

It is a new era for the city school board. The school system is moving quickly, which itself is unusual, and unlike in past land selections, school officials appear to have done their homework. But the sooner the public is involved, the better. No one likes the appearance of backroom decisions, especially not when it comes to spending $90 million in public money to shape this city for coming generations.

McCaulley said any group in north Huntsville who wants to hear more can email her at laurie.mccaulley@hsv-k12.org and she'd set up a presentation regarding Johnson High options.

Updated Jan. 9 at 5:20 p.m. to include comment from St. John African Methodist Episcopal Church.